

HOW TO L'SK TIIK PUl'CLAK I LOKA. 



103 



species it is that we happen to have. If a field plant Howoiin^ in May, and 

 with a bulbous l)ase of the Htcui just under^M'ound, it is the HcLiious Ckowfoot 

 or JiuTTEiiCLP, or in Latin, li. hnllxixnti. If the taller species, without a bulb, 

 and flowering in suininer (which is the most coninion kind tln()U<:hout tho 

 country), it is Tall Ckowfoot or Hli tkio ir, or It urrix. Havin<( in this way 

 made out one (Crowfoot, you will be sure to know any other one as soon as you 

 see it, and will only have to find out the specicjs, couipaiin^' your specimen with 

 the descriptions, on p 1 18. 



324. Suppose, f(jr the next examjde, you have specimens, with flowei"S and younrf 

 fruit, of a common plant in wet grounds in spring', here called (Jowslip, though 

 this is not its correct Knglish name. \V ilh specimens in hand, turn to p. 109. 



To which class does it belon<jf ? Its netted-veined leaves (and the structure 

 of the stem, .as seen in a slice under a good magnilying-glassj plainly refer it to 

 Class I. You next ask, — 



To which subcliiss ? The pistils and pods plainly refer it to Subclass I. 



To whi -h divisi(jn < At first view you may think it has a corolla ; but t here 

 is no calyx outside of these yellow leaves of tho flower, even in the bud. So you 

 will conclude that these leaves are tho calvx. notwithstandiu'' their rich colour and 

 petal-like appearance; and you will turn to the ApifaloUff division, on ]>. i 14, 



Continue the analysis under that di\ ision. I'he flowers are se[)arate, and 

 "not in catkins ;" so it falls under A. The sfc>e(ls ai'e numerous in each ovary 

 or pod ; so it falls under No. i. The "calyx is free from the ovary," ju^coi'ding 

 to the second of the first pair of liius. So you have only to choose betw«>en tho 

 three lines of the triplet under this, beginning with " l*<)d. " As the pistils and 

 pods are one-celled and simple, we are brought to the name tCiu)\VFooT Family, 

 p. 116. The njark f denotes that you have in this case an apetalous plant be- 

 longing to a family in which the flowers generally have petals. You turn to 

 this family, p. 116, and j)roceed as befoi-e. You are led along the same track, 

 until vou reach the line " Pistils many or several, becominj; akenes in fruit." 

 Your flowers have a number of pistils, but these contain numerous seeds, ar)d 

 make pods in fruit, sis in Fig. 240. So you pjuss on to the other line of tho 

 couplet, which reads, "Pistils more than one-seede<l, becoming pods;" which 

 agrees with the plant in hand. The first line in the next rank reads : " Sepals 

 petal-like, not falling when the flower flrst opens " (so it is in your plant) ; and, 

 of the four lines of the next rank, you can take only the first : " (Sepals) golJen- 



■f : 



V^l 



